Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols
SS Chapter 86: A Mediocre Talent (4)
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TL: FoodieMonster007
"Kang Kiyeon?" Choi Jeho answered, his lips barely moving.
I think he was watching something on his phone back then, too. I do not remember what kind of video it was.
"Looks like he's worrying about this and that," said Kim Iwol, who was sitting with his back to me and working on his laptop.
"Unless it's about choreography. We're all more or less at the same level, so what I say isn't going to make much of a difference."
"Saying you have no advice because Kiyeon is doing so well is high praise, but there are still things you can say as an older brother. This kind of talk is more impactful coming from a member in the same position."
Kim Iwol did not even have enough time to handle his own work. Even setting aside the fact that no one in spArk was slacking off, Kim Iwol was busy.
Kim Iwol's time was mostly spent for others. He was the complete opposite of Choi Jeho, who focused on his own share. His efforts may have made the team stronger, but it felt wrong to encourage him by saying he was doing a good job.
"You have so much fucking time on your hands."
"My schedule would be much freer if Choi Jeho helped, right?"
I hinted that he should tone it down, but it was no use. His shamelessness was top-tier.
"Sigh…"
I naturally swallowed the curse that was about to escape. I did as Kim Iwol said and even struck up a conversation with Kang Kiyeon after he got off work.
The conversation was longer than expected. I never knew Kang Kiyeon had so much to say. I knew he had worries, but I trusted he would resolve them on his own with his abilities.
He was a guy with that much capability. That was why I was surprised. Well, it was true that Kim Iwol was never wrong.
The conversation with Kang Kiyeon was impressive. His unadorned sentences frankly revealed his worries, and at the same time, they also revealed the image Choi Jeho and the members had.
Especially the part where he said, 'Trying hard won't make me like you, hyung.'
Choi Jeho had never felt that admiring or becoming like someone was particularly meaningful. That person's life and my life are not the same, and it is not like I am going to live someone else's life for them, so why bother? This was why he had neither a role model nor a cautionary tale.
He thought Kang Kiyeon would be similar. He was talented and persistent, so he was bound to make it someday.
There was no need to feel inferior to others, so why was he like that?
Even hearing that Kim Iwol had called him a natural-born talent did not stir any emotion in him. All he learned was that Kim Iwol had been serious when he was nagging him about being the 'center of a millennium' and to be conscious of being the face of the team.
They were both the same. These guys, who did not even rest because they were so busy with self-improvement, were raising the hurdles for themselves.
Are other people's eyes that important? Public opinion, what people think. For that matter, Choi Jeho did not even care about comments.
This stance was not just limited to criticism. Compliments did not really resonate with Choi Jeho either.
It was common for a promising trainee to debut and then falter, or for their fancam views and public recognition to be completely separate. There was no need to be overjoyed or dejected by every little thing when you could pass the standard in one place but not be accepted in another.
In a situation like this, whether the judgment of others, of third parties, of the public, is important… he really did not know. There might be people with slightly superior talents. Some might be born with it.
However, that is not all there is to it, is it? If that were everything, why even try? If your limits are already set, you might as well just live.
It is because that is not the case that we practice.
If Kim Iwol could read his inner thoughts, he would throw a crazed fit with fire in his eyes. It was obvious what he would say.
He would probably say a hundred times that I had a rotten attitude for someone with a public-facing job, and as a bonus, he would add that I do not know how to be grateful even when complimented.
He had never thought deeply about geniuses. However, would not a truly great person do more than just evoke feelings of envy, and instead, influence others in some way?
There are many talented people who can make you gasp in admiration. The world outside one's own boundaries is generally like that.
Whether it is the work of a student preparing for entrance exams, the embroidery of a hobby class, or the calligraphy at a lifelong learning center, fields you do not know much about always look amazing. Because I cannot do it as well.
However, there are also those in the world who can move you to the point of sending shivers down your spine, and those who can shake someone's life with a single short phrase. The commonality is that they have the power to change the lives of others.
Choi Jeho's on-air way of speaking resembled Kim Iwol's. It was the result of practicing, unable to withstand the nagging.
Choi Jeho would act comfortably off-camera but behave differently in front of it. The other members were in a similar situation. They had changed a lot since their trainee days.
At the center of this change was Kim Iwol. He changed everything.
You had to be at least that good. You had to prove you had the capacity to completely alter the paths of others to deserve the word 'genius'.
In conclusion, the way Choi Jeho saw himself, he was no genius or anything of the sort. He was just the dance member of spArk and the eldest hyung who landed the center position because various conditions aligned, just that.
So, he just hoped Kang Kiyeon would do his own thing and do it well. He was too precious a talent to be devalued just because he was envious of others.
If he did that, someone might see Kang Kiyeon and experience a change in their own life. That was how idols are made, Choi Jeho thought.
Fortunately, Kang Kiyeon's long-standing worries were resolved well. The old pouch and his burning passion were all back in their rightful place.
I cleaned up the aftermath with a joyful heart. This means I worked like my head was spinning. I have no memory of about two weeks in the middle.
I am adding this because Jeong Seongbin was worried, saying my pupils looked unfocused, but it was purely because I was busy.
My head was such a mess that there was no room for my runaway depression to return.
Nevertheless, there was one thing that gave me the strength not to get exhausted…
A-cut selections complete. (* …Kiyeon …Iwol )
…It was Kang Kiyeon's visuals. A result beyond what I had imagined in my head was right before my eyes.
When his cold face and wet black hair came together, the kid became a freeze-dried handsome man. I was so moved that my eyes welled up.
As I was covering my mouth and staring at my laptop, Park Joowoo came over to take a look.
"I have achieved it all."
"Already…? You don't need to watch the music video…?"
"I can't do that."
Thanks to Park Joowoo, who had become skilled at handling people, my ascension to nirvana was postponed. Of course, we went all the way to Jeju Island, so how could I wash my hands of it without seeing the final product?
I do not know what Choi Jeho said to Kang Kiyeon. Neither of them said much about it.
All I got was a notification from Choi Jeho later, saying, "I talked with Kang Kiyeon."
The effect was clear, despite the half-hearted report. Kang Kiyeon, who had been agonizing over the title track and fretting over his lost pouch, had completely regained his former focus.
There was no hesitation in his actions and decisions. His rational, goal-oriented demeanor was perfectly the Kang Kiyeon of old.
To commemorate the return of the light in his eyes, I handed Kang Kiyeon a reference PDF file that Lee Cheonghyeon and I had worked together to create. I also declared that I would make him the most damp and dark, moss-like man in the world.
Kang Kiyeon was not pleased at all.
What more is there to say about the concept? It suited Kang Kiyeon perfectly. The kid flawlessly pulled off the image of being more humid than mud and mustier than mold.
It was only natural that the photos came out well. I had expected it, but seeing it in person was a different feeling, which is why I am so emotional. Even the laptop screen looked damp, and it was great.
"You put a lot of effort into the proposal this time, didn't you?" Lee Cheonghyeon spoke from behind me.
"Have I ever submitted a subpar document?"
"Never. What I mean is, I felt a tremendous obsession that wasn't there before."
"Why has your speech pattern become so much like a literal translation?"
"I've been watching too many of Joowoo-hyung's 『SYNDROME』 performance videos."
"Well, that's worth watching a lot."
It was true that I poured my soul into Kang Kiyeon's album proposal. If Jeong Seongbin's task was 'to imprint his position,' Kang Kiyeon's task was 'to resolve his internal conflict.'
The content would be entirely his own creation, but I went to great lengths to choose the prettiest wrapping paper so that he might like it even a little.
"The preparation period overlapped with our album, so you must not have had much time. You worked hard."
"It's for the team, so how can you call it hard work?"
"I know you're serious about your work, so I don't doubt you, but will you put this much effort in if I release a solo album?"
"Yeah, just bring the song. I'll design a special edition LP version and make it so the backs of the photocards connect to form the sheet music for the title track. Shall we do the music video release live stream with a listening party concept?"
"I don't even have plans to release an album, but you've already got all the ideas…?"
Lee Cheonghyeon was flabbergasted. Of course, the creator of spArk's music is going to release an album, you think I would just stand by?
I am confident I could pull out the pillars of UtopiA to give you a super-luxurious debut, so just bring your will.
As I was speaking, burning with my remaining passion, Lee Cheonghyeon just took the mouse and scrolled down.
After looking closely at the photos, he commented, "You really like 『Bright』, don't you?"
"Is it obvious?"
His perceptiveness was faster than Park Joowoo's footsteps when he hears that gossip is blooming. It was just amazing how he knew the core was the same when the color palette and atmosphere were completely different.
"I can see a firm resolve to be evaluated as being crazy for beauty."
"I think it's possible because the model is excellent. Kiyeon has quite the face, you know. We're trusting the choreography that His Majesty Jeho found pleasing to the eye."
Choi Jeho never says anything he doesn't mean. If he said it was okay, then it was okay. If he said it was good, then it was really good.
A song that Lee Cheonghyeon personally handled from start to finish, with choreography that passed Choi Jeho's approval? There's no way this could fail. The lineup was so perfect that if this album flopped, it would be my fault.
So, what can I do? Give it my very best, of course.
After I solved the problem, Lee Cheonghyeon said, "I don't think Kanggeon will fall and sprain his ankle."
There was only one answer I could give.
"Of course. Kiyeon always succeeds when push comes to shove."
Just like how he overcame his phobia before his debut evaluation, and overcame a panic attack to perform with us on our first stage.
Even if he hits a snag, Kang Kiyeon always reaches the goal eventually. All he needed was time, and he would naturally achieve the result.
My belief was ultimately proven correct. Kang Kiyeon lived up to expectations.